AIT partners with ASEAN Foundation in B 9.7 mil scholarship programme

In a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) signed in early November, the two partners agreed to support citizens of ASEAN member countries to obtain graduate degrees at AIT under a newly devised cooperation platform called the ASEAN Foundation ─ AIT Scholarship Programme. This scholarship programme is part of the ASEAN Foundation Scholarships for Postgraduate Studies and is funded through the Japan-ASEAN Solidarity Fund. The three-year agreement will enable scholarship recipients to enroll for studies at AIT in January 2008

According to the deal, ASEAN Foundation (AF), based in Jakarta, Indonesia, will fully fund the cost of ten ASEAN nationals to study at AIT, each up to a maximum amount of Thai Baht 970,600 or US$ 30,331. Four scholarship slots will be awarded under the project “Capacity building for Gender, Poverty and Mobility Analysis of Road Transportation Development in GMS Region”. An additional 6 scholarships are for any program offered within AIT’s School of Environment, Resources and Development and its School of Engineering and Technology.

ASEAN Foundation’s objective for this scholarship programme is to assist the development of high quality human resources within the ten ASEAN member countries, particularly through post graduate studies. Apart from funding the initiative, AF will approve the selection of the ‘ASEAN Scholars’ for the ASEAN Foundation-AIT Scholarship Programme, monitor the programme’s implementation and manage the scholarship funds.

The ASEAN Foundation is an inter-governmental non-profit organisation established by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries in 1997 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Its ultimate aim is help bring about shared prosperity and a sustainable future to the members of ASEAN: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam. It has been mandated to promote greater awareness of ASEAN and greater interaction among its peoples and their increased participation in ASEAN activities. It also undertakes development cooperation activities that enhance mutual assistance, in order to address equitable economic development and reduce poverty.

According to the MoA, AIT will conduct a selection process and recommend a short-list of scholarship candidates for approval by ASEAN Foundation. Officials at AIT stressed, however, that any potential scholarship winner must meet AIT’s academic admission requirements, in particular its exacting English-language standards.

For AIT, the agreement is an example of its commitment to play a proactive role in the development of human resources across the ASEAN region. As a leading regional educational institute based in Thailand, with Satellite Center campuses in Vietnam and Indonesia, and with an extensive range of educational, research, training and outreach expertise and experience, AIT has been actively partnering with ASEAN and serving as facilitator / platform in various ASEAN identified areas of cooperation, through its network of partners, universities and research institutions.

Presently at AIT, 57 % of its alumni and 78 % of currently enrolled students are from ASEAN member countries. In addition, more than half of the 22,000-strong alumni from professional training courses conducted at AIT are from ASEAN member countries. Most of the ASEAN member countries, as well as the ASEAN plus-three countries, are represented on the AIT Board of Trustees and form a strong part of the governance of the Asian Institute of Technology. Over the last five decades, AIT has been an active partner of ASEAN and has played an important role in capacity building and the sustainable development of the ASEAN region.